Curtis Lazar’s impact on and off the ice is a significant one for the New Jersey Devils. He may describe himself as a “happy go lucky guy” off the ice, but that infectious positivity is a key part of the culture in the locker room.
“He’s a guy with a lot of energy on and off the ice,” Siegenthaler shared about Lazar. “He’s easy to talk to and just a friendly, nice guy. He brings a lot to the team and we really appreciate him here and it’s nice to have him around.”
“He’s a great guy, he’s a funny guy,” Nosek said about Lazar. “I played with him in Boston too so it’s been great to play with him and be around him and you always want to have guys like him in the locker room.
“He’s smiling a lot always,” Nosek continued. “He brings energy every game and every practice and he’s the guy that gives us energy for sure.”
Interim head coach Travis Green had similar things to say about the forward’s personality, but also discussed how his hard work and perseverance led him to this point of his career.
“Lazar is a popular guy in the room,” Green shared after Friday’s practice. “He works (hard), he comes to the rink every day with a positive attitude, he does things that a lot of players don’t like doing. He’s found a way from being a high draft pick and a high-end goal scoring guy and turned his career into one where he’s now a bottom-six guy and a character guy in the room, and does a lot of the things that go unnoticed but you really need to win. You can’t have enough of those guys around because they help your team get over the line a lot of nights.”
On Friday morning, Lazar was announced as the Devils nominee for the Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy which goes the NHL player who “most exemplifies the qualities of perseverance, sportsmanship, and dedication to ice hockey.” This is Lazar’s third nomination and he reflected on the nomination and his journey in the NHL.
“I do take a lot of pride in it,” Lazar explained. “My career hasn’t always been that straight-line trajectory but I think I credit myself for just sticking with the plan, fighting for every day in the NHL. It speaks a lot to the culture here, the guys, being surrounded with people helping you to succeed in that spot.”
“He’s been around the league for a little while, he looks young but he’s been in the league awhile,” Green joked about Lazar. “ But what people sometimes don’t understand is what players go through a lot on the ice, off the ice, within their family. Lazar persevered through some tough things last year a little bit with his family and being away, and his wife being pregnant and that’s not always easy. He’s been a constant pro through it all. It’s a good nomination.”
